CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s soccer team (0-2) is set to host American (0-1-1) on Friday (Aug. 28) at Klöckner Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on ACCNX.
Admission to all Virginia men’s and women’s soccer matches is free.
How to Follow:
Friday night’s match against American will be streamed on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX) which is available through the ESPN app and at WatchESPN.com for customers who have the ACC Network as part of their TV subscription. Links to both the broadcast and live stats are available at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official Twitter account (@UVAMenSoccer).
For Openers:
- The Cavaliers are coming off back-to-back one-goal defeats to UCLA (L, 1-2) and No. 16 High Point (L, 2-3).
- Sami Oulouheu provided a lift to help UVA rally twice against High Point scoring and assisting on both Virginia’s equalizing goals.
- Arnold Matshazi scored his first goal as a Cavalier to level the score against High Point. Matshazi accounted for 12 goals at SDSU last season.
- Virginia has not lost three consecutive games to open a season since 1996 and has not opened a season without a win in its first three games since 1974.
The Series with American:
- Virginia holds a 20-4 advantage in the all-time series with American which dates to 1979
- The Cavaliers are 15-3 against the Eagles under head coach George Gelnovatch and 16-3 at home.
- Virginia was won each of the last three meetings with American including a spectacular finish in 2024 in which Virginia trailed 2-0 but scored four unanswered goals to win the game. Current Cavaliers Luke Burns (1g) and Alex Parvu (1a) each tallied goal contributions in that game.
- The last meeting between the sides was a 1-0 win for the Cavaliers at Klöckner Stadium. Umberto Pela scored the opening goal of the match less than 10 minutes in on assists from Marco Dos Santos and Alex Parvu.
Noting the 2026 Cavaliers
- Virginia returns four players with 10+ starts in 2025 including Alex Parvu (RWB), Sebastian Pop (CB), Zach Ehrenpreis (LCB), and Marco Dos Santos (CAM).
- An All-ACC third team selection, Pop led the team playing all 1,720 minutes of the 2025 season.
- Dos Santos was third on the team in 2025 with 12 points (1g, 10a). Six of his assists came on game-winning goals, third most in a single season at UVA.
- The roster also features five players who played significant roles in 2025 including Brendan Lambe (CM), Bacary Tandjigora (CM), Sami Oulouheu (CM), Parker Sloan (CB) and AJ Smith (ST).
- Three transfers joined UVA in January including Arnold Matshazi (ST, San Jose State), Ethan Martinez (CDM, Sata Clara), and Peter Tolkin (CB/Butler).
- Virginia’s eight-player signing class was ranked fifth by Top Drawer Soccer and features Isaac Mwakatuya (D), Prince Abanfo (F), Chase Duke (F), Nate Young (D), Chase Gozdieski (D), Zeus Rankin (F/M), Emiliano Mercenari (F/M), and Diego Guerra (M).
The Virginia Standard
- In 2025, Virginia claimed the outright ACC regular season title and the top seed in the ACC Tournament for the first time since 2001 – UVA finished runners up in the ACC Tournament
- The Cavaliers ended last season on 18 points with an unbeaten 5-0-3 record in ACC play
- Head Coach George Gelnovatch was named ACC Coach of the Year in 2025
- As the No. 2 seed in 2025, the Cavaliers earned a first-round bye in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive season.
- Virginia earned a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament for the 11th time in program history
- The Cavaliers are one of three teams in NCAA Division I to earn a first-round bye in each of the last four seasons (Stanford, SMU) – of those teams, Virginia is the only program to earn multiple top-four seeds in that span.
- Overall, Virginia and Georgetown are the only teams to earn multiple top-four seeds in that span.
- Virginia went 3-1-3 against ranked opposition in 2025 with four positive results over the top-10 including wins at No. 6 Louisville, No. 2 NC State and No. 1 Wake Forest
On the Horizon:
The Cavaliers will be back in action on Monday (Aug. 31) when they host FGCU. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. at Klöckner Stadium on ACCNX.